Manchester City chase back-to-back wins against newly promoted Ipswich Town
Manchester City host Ipswich Town at the Etihad Stadium on Saturday, 24 August at 15:00 (GMT+1). Michael Salisbury will referee the match, with David Coote serving as VAR official. Following a comfortable opening-day victory over Chelsea, Pep Guardiola is keen to maintain momentum against the promoted Tractor Boys.
Ipswich Town begin Premier League adventure with a rude awakening
After an absence of no fewer than 22 years, Ipswich Town returned to the top flight of English football — but the reunion with the Premier League got off to a painful start. On the opening day, the Suffolk club were beaten 2-0 by Liverpool, where manager Arne Slot marked his debut in style. Diogo Jota (60') and Mohamed Salah (65') gave the Tractor Boys a harsh welcome back to the big time under Kieran McKenna. Now an even sterner test awaits: an away trip to Manchester City, their first meeting since January 2002 — a fixture that ended in a 4-1 defeat for Ipswich. The broader statistics make for equally sobering reading: in their last seven away league matches against reigning top-flight champions, Ipswich failed to score a single goal and collected just one point (0W, 1D, 6L). McKenna is expected to set his side up in a 4-2-3-1 formation with Liam Delap leading the line. Concerns are mounting in the treatment room, however: at least three players are already ruled out — Harry Clarke, George Hirst and Nathan Broadhead — and as many as seven players could be missing in Manchester.
Manchester City swept past Chelsea and are looking to push on
Manchester City kicked off the new Premier League season with a commanding 2-0 victory over Chelsea, the most anticipated top-of-the-bill clash of the opening round. The four-time consecutive champions had little trouble with the Londoners. Erling Haaland drew first blood early on, threading his way past two Chelsea defenders in characteristically clinical fashion before tucking the ball into the corner (18'). Deep into the second half, former Chelsea midfielder Mateo Kovačić sealed the win at 2-0 (84'), though he kept his celebrations deliberately muted out of respect for his old club. The victory brought City's tally to thirteen opening-day wins in fourteen seasons — the only blemish being a 1-0 home defeat to Tottenham Hotspur in the 2021/22 campaign. Although manager Pep Guardiola admitted he had not anticipated such a comfortable result, his attention now turns to the meeting with Ipswich. City boast a formidable record against promoted sides: since April 2021, when Leeds United won 2-1 at the Etihad, they have gone unbeaten across eighteen matches, claiming seventeen wins and one draw (17W, 1D, 0L). Guardiola is likely to name a 4-2-3-1 line-up once again, with Haaland spearheading the attack. Midfielder Rodri is a doubt, as is new signing Savinho, who was forced off at half-time during the Chelsea match with an injury.
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Source: Sportmonks
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